Fruit-conveyer.



H. HAMMOND.

FRUIT GON'VEYER.

APPLIOATION FILED NOV 1, 1909.

Patented Nov. 29, 1910.

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Tl TTE STATE ATEN FRUIT-CONVEYER.

Application filed November 1, 1909.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HUGH HAMMoND, a citizen of the United States, andresident of Rochester, in the county of Monroe and State of New York,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Fruit-Conveyers, ofwhich the following is a specification.

This invention relates to fruit oonveyers, and the purpose is to conveyfruit unharmed from the tree to the ground as fast as it is picked.

The device is designed for use in connection with an ordinary ladder,but might be made a self-supporting structure without departing from thespirit of this invention.

In the drawings :F igure 1 is a front elevation of the device as itappears in use Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same, one side of thesupporting ladder being removed; and Fig. 3 is a sectional plan viewtaken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

In the form in which the conveyor is shown, it comprises a zigzag orstaggered chute 1, open on one side, through which, when supported inupright position, fruit passes, and is retarded in its passage so thatit falls gently out from its lower end.

A convenient way of constructing the chute 1 is to provide first a board2 with two staggered rows of studs 3, 3, at equal distances apart, thatproject at right angles to the face of the board, and that have enlargedheads on their outer ends (Fi 3), and then to stretch along eachstaggere row of studs a strip of flexible material 4, such as canvas forexample, each strip passing alternately outside and inside of a stud.The canvas strips 4, 4 are of a width equal to the length of the studsfrom the under side of their heads to the board 2, and so are held inposition by the heads of the studs, with their inner edges against theboard (see Fig. 2). This leaves the chute open on one side only.

The conveyer can be made in sections, as shown in the drawings, in orderto adapt it for different elevations, and so that it can be handled andtransported readily. When so made the staggered rows of studs are madeto correspond on the different sections, and those at the ends of thesections that Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 29, 1910.

Serial No. 525,837.

I meet are placed close to such ends so that a continuous passagethrough the chute is formed. The sections are secured one to the otherby hooks 6, 6, or other suitable means.

The upper section, as shown in the drawings, is equipped with hooks orsimilar attachments 7, 7, that are adapted to engage a rung of a ladder8. This upper section of the chute may also be provided with a hopper 9at its upper end, into which the apples can be dropped.

It is apparent from Fig. 1 of the drawings that fruit, such as applesfor example, cannot fall vertically through the conveyer a distancegreater than the width of the chute before it strikes one of its sides,when it will roll down that side and strike the side opposite, and so onthrough the length of the chute. As the direction of the rotation of theapple is necessarily reversed each time it strikes one of the sides,that will cause it to be retarded, and it will not gain suflicientmomentum to bruise itself when it reaches the ground. As a ladder whenused for picking fruit is usually slanted toward the tree (Fig. 2),there is no tendency for the fruit to leave the open side of the chuteat any point, and by being open on the side away from the ladder, canreceive fruit at any point. An additional safeguard against bruising thefruit may be provided by fastening pads 10 in the inner corners of thechute, and this is particularly desirable when the fruit is small, forotherwise it might strike the studs 3. But the pads are unnecessary whenthe size of the fruit approximates the distance between the strips 4, 4.

lVhat I claim is A fruit conveyer having, in combination, two series ofpins arranged in staggered parallel alinement, a strip of flexiblematerial arranged in zig-zag position about each series of pins to forma zig-zag passage between said strips, and a yielding cushion fixed tosaid strip in each inner corner of said passage and inside of the pin insaid corner, to prevent contact between the fruit and the pins.

HUGH HAMMOND. Witnesses D. GURNEE, L. THON.

